Marquez clinches front row in Qatar, Pedrosa qualifies in seventh

An incredibly close first QP of the 2016 season saw Marc Marquez qualify on the front row with the field’s second best lap time (1’54.634), while Dani Pedrosa set the seventh fastest lap at 1’55.078, a fraction away from the second row.

Following a very positive FP4 session in which he posted a succession of laps in the mid 1’55 range, Marc had a solid first exit in Q2, setting a time that was just 91 thousandths down on what would prove to be Lorenzo’s pole time. After exiting the garage again, Marquez began his fast lap a couple of seconds too late, just missing out on the opportunity to improve.

Dani was fifth after the first run but was unable to make the most of his second tyre and had to settle for seventh.

The red lights for the Qatar GP will switch off tomorrow night at 9 p.m. local time.

Marc Marquez

2nd1'54.634

"I am happy. At first I thought I had taken pole, but when I got back the team told me that the chequered flag had already been shown before I began my lap. On the display I saw 1:54.2 and thought it was the pole time, but it didn’t count. We are satisfied with the feeling we have with the bike and how everything in general is going. At the end of Q2 we had a scare when making a practice start. Something happened and now we have to see what it was. We'll see tomorrow if we can keep this pace up, which I think will be good for the race."

Dani Pedrosa

7th1'55.078

"Today was not the best day for us. I've been trying to decide which tyres we will use tomorrow and I didn’t find a good pace in PF4. Later, in Q2, I started well but had a problem with the second tyre and could not improve my times. Unfortunately I dropped down a few places and I am not as high up the grid as I would like, but tomorrow we will be fully focused on having a good race."

MotoGP 2016Saturday, March 19th 2016

Qualifying
Round 1
Grand Prix of QatarQatar

Results Session

Night - Clear

Humidity

60%

Track Temp

21°C

Air Temp

21°C

Pos.

Rider

Num

Nation

Team

Constructor

Time/Gap

1

Lorenzo Jorge

99

SPA

Movistar Yamaha MotoGP

Yamaha

1'54.543

2

Marquez Marc

93

SPA

Repsol Honda Team

Honda

1'54.634

3

Vinales Maverick

25

SPA

Team Suzuki Ecstar

Suzuki

1'54.638

4

Iannone Andrea

29

ITA

Ducati Team

Ducati

1'54.693

5

Rossi Valentino

46

ITA

Yamaha

1'54.815

6

Dovizioso Andrea

4

ITA

Ducati Team

Ducati

1'54.963

7

Pedrosa Dani

26

SPA

Repsol Honda Team

Honda

1'55.078

8

Barbera Hector

8

SPA

Avintia Racing

Ducati

1'55.165

9

Espargaro Pol

44

SPA

Monster Yamaha Tech 3

Yamaha

1'55.302

10

Crutchlow Cal

35

GBR

Honda

1'55.352

11

Smith Bradley

38

GBR

Monster Yamaha Tech 3

Yamaha

1'55.414

12

Redding Scott

45

GBR

Octo Pramac Yakhnich

Ducati

1'55.508

13

Hernandez Yonny

68

COL

Aspar Team

Ducati

1'56.157

14

Laverty Eugene

50

IRE

Aspar Team

Ducati

1'56.186

15

Espargaro Aleix

41

SPA

Team Suzuki Ecstar

Suzuki

1'56.238

16

Baz Loris

76

FRA

Avintia Racing

Ducati

1'56.375

17

Bautista Alvaro

19

SPA

Aspar Team

Ducati

1'56.595

18

Miller Jack

43

AUS

EG 0,0 Marc VDS

Honda

1'56.620

19

Rabat Tito

53

SPA

EG 0,0 Marc VDS

Honda

1'57.108

20

Bradl Stefan

6

GER

Aprilia Racing Team Gresini

Aprilia

1'57.216

Gallery

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Location Information

The fabulous Losail International Circuit lies on the outskirts of Doha, the capital city of Qatar. Built in little over a year, the track cost $58 million USD and required round-the-clock dedication from almost 1,000 workers in order to get it ready for the inaugural event – the Marlboro Grand… read more.

Location Information

The fabulous Losail International Circuit lies on the outskirts of Doha, the capital city of Qatar. Built in little over a year, the track cost $58 million USD and required round-the-clock dedication from almost 1,000 workers in order to get it ready for the inaugural event – the Marlboro Grand… read more.